Gift for a Rose
by mediaocrity4
Summary: Ruby and Jaune's wedding is right around the corner. But Ruby's birthday is coming up even sooner. Jaune has to decide what to get his betrothed for her birthday, if anything. One-shot submission for Nine Days of Lancaster.


9 Days of Lancaster

 **AN: I decided to write this as part of the 9 Days of Lancaster. Which, I always seem to be on hiatus for. Hmm. Well, this story takes place within the RWBYond continuity but takes place before Ruby and Jaune's marriage.**

Jaune opened the door after a long day at work. He was pleasantly surprised to see Ruby, sitting on the couch in his hoodie and her own pajama pants. She had a glass of milk in her hand and a magazine in her lap.

"Welcome home honey." She said without looking up from her magazine.

"Hey." Jaune said tiredly.

"Rough day?" She asked.

"Mentally exhausting." Jaune said. "I swear, sometimes these kids play dumb just to mess with me." He slumped onto the couch and massaged his temples. Ruby pinched his leg and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"You knew what you were getting into." Ruby said.

"It's not just that." Jaune said. "Knowing all this content is one thing. Knowing how to explain it in a meaningful way to where these kids will learn is something else entirely."

"Which is why I'm not a teacher." She moved her head and kissed him on the cheek. "What do you want to eat? We have pasta and pizza."

"Is that it?"

"That's all that I'm willing to make." Ruby giggled.

"I'll have pizza." Jaune said. Ruby pecked him on rim of his mouth. Her lips tasted like sweet strawberry milk and chocolate.

"Alright, I'll make dinner while you relax." Ruby stood up and walked into the kitchen. Jaune's eyes drifted left to right, following the sway of her hips.

It had been several months since Jaune moved in and got a job teaching at Signal Academy. In that time, he and Ruby had developed their relationship to the point where he had managed to propose to her.

As Ruby slid the pizza in the oven, Jaune slipped in behind her and wrapped his arms around his fiancé. She smelled so clean, like a lavender scented morning. Her hair was still damp. She must have just gotten out of the shadow when he arrived.

"So, how was your day?" He asked as he took a whiff of her shoulder.

"It was fine." Ruby said. Jaune put his lips to her neck and started ravishing her crook to where she started laughing.

"You weren't here when I got up this morning." Jaune lamented.

"I got a call to oversee a field trip to Forever Fall." Ruby stated. "It was nice getting out of the house and hanging out with some prospective huntsmen for a change." She reached back and ran her hand through his hair. "Speaking of which, Ren and Nora are coming over tomorrow."

"How are they doing? Feels like I haven't talked to them in forever."

"They're doing fine. They've just been really busy."

"I know the feeling." Jaune said with a sigh. He broke his grip on her and looked at the calendar hanging on the fridge. "Your birthday is coming up." He said.

"Oh…I haven't even thought about that." Ruby said. "All this wedding business has got me drained."

"I thought Weiss was handling all that."

"She's doing the leg work but it's my wedding…"

"Our wedding." Jaune corrected.

"Our wedding, not hers. She still needs my, our, approval for everything." Ruby pulled her bangs from her eyes. "She spammed me messages about catering. As if I care what kind of food is available at the reception. Have it all available for all I care."

"Well…I think my opinion is a bit more valid than yours when it comes to stuff like this."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ruby said indignantly.

"I mean…I've actually been to weddings. I know what one looks like."

"I do too."

"You've only seen it in videos and photos. I lived it."

"Gah, whatever." Ruby huffed.

"My point is that we're getting married pretty soon. Weiss is planning it but she's just one person, and not the kind that would delegate something like this to just anybody. You, me and her, we're all in this together. There's no need to get stressed out. Let me pick some stuff out if you can't decide."

He put a hand on her shoulder. She gave him a half-hearted smile. He gazed into her eyes, listening closely for any gears moving around in her head. She seemed to accept his answer but said nothing further. Thus, only proving Jaune further, that she was stressing over nothing. When he caught that look, he wrapped his hands around her thighs and pulled her up into a kiss.

"Jaune!" She yelped. He grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her up to the counter.

"Have I told you how good you smell today?" Jaune said as he suckled her neck.

"It's this new shampoo I'm using."

"I kinda want to try it." Jaune said.

"Then you'd smell like a girl." Ruby chuckled.

"I'm fine with that so long as I smell like you." Jaune teased her face with kisses. Ruby burst out laughing from his romantic language.

"You would say something like that." She grabbed his face and pulled him into a kiss.

"But seriously, I really don't care if I smell girly." Jaune said. "It has nothing to do with you." Ruby laughed a little bit more. As their eyes met again, Jaune decided to begin the next line of questioning. "What do you want for your birthday?"

"Oh Jaune, I don't need anything." Ruby shook her head. "We're getting married soon so…I can do without birthday presents…at least from you."

"If you say so." Jaune said. Admittedly, it was sound logic. Sure, Weiss had offered to pay for the wedding, and Jaune's family were no slouches either on that front, but any money he had should be saved for their wedding and honeymoon.

"Of course, my dad is still taking me out to dinner and a movie." She gloated. "Without you." She poked him on the nose.

"Who am I to question family tradition?" He gave a dramatic gesture. Thus, denying her the reaction she wanted to tease him with. Sadly, Ruby had a backup plan.

"What, do you not want to go with us?"

"Entirely up to you." He countered.

The smell of pizza broke their verbal duel. The look they gave each other let them both know it had ended in a draw. Jaune was really going to have to thank his sisters, and Nora, one day for preparing him for how women like to manipulate things into their favor.

The next day…

"Wake up Jaune." Ruby voice pierced through the dark haze of Jaune's dream.

"Just five more minutes." Jaune insisted.

"Ren and Nora are going to be here any minute." Ruby said. Jaune's eyes lazily fell open. He was greeted to the sight of his fiancé's bare back as she slipped a bra on. Jaune sat up in their bed, reached over and pulled his own shirt off the floor. He smelled it, just to be sure it was clean enough. Satisfied, he slipped it on.

Ruby was quickly getting dressed. Jaune stood up and put on his pants. Ruby slipped on her blouse and adjusted her corset. After putting her skirt on, she took a can of perfume and sprayed herself down. She then turned and sprayed Jaune.

"Hey!" Jaune danced around indignantly.

"I thought you said you didn't mind smelling like a girl." Ruby grinned. Jaune stuck his tongue out at her in response. "I need you to run to the store."

"What for?" Jaune asked. Ruby grabbed a notepad and started writing stuff down.

"We need milk and bread. I also want you to get some steak for dinner. I'm going to make breakfast while you're out." She handed him the list and some money, kissed him on the lips and ushered him out of the room.

Jaune rode his bike down to the store. The ride was rough on the dirt roads that populated Patch. Jaune was determined to save some money for a moped, or ask for one for his birthday or a holiday.

He was in and out of the store pretty quickly. He was familiar enough with the lay out to find everything. And the list was pretty brief. He also decided to grab a case of soda to drink. It was unlikely they'd be drinking a lot of soda, but options were always nice.

When he got back, Ren and Nora were already there and the whole house smelled of pancakes. Jaune sighed, knowing that all the pancakes were in the middle of getting murdered by the fiend who had invaded the household.

"Jaune!" Nora ran up and crushed him in a hug, syrup caked to her mouth.

"Hey…Nora." Jaune pushed the words out of his constricted sternum. She let him down, allowing him to catch his breath. Ruby slipped in and grabbed the milk.

"Thanks honey." She said before slipping back into the kitchen.

"You two are so cute." Nora pinched Jaune's cheek.

"Mom, you're embarrassing me." Jaune said mockingly.

"Hey, I'm just looking out for you." Nora said as she leaned in. "Ruby seems like the crazy romantic type." She whispered.

"She tries." Jaune sighed with a smile. "Sometimes I still think she's more in love with being a huntress than she ever will be with me."

"Nah, different kind of love." Nora assured. "She loves hunting the same way I love pancakes. Or hearts. Ooh, or bears."

"Yeah, I get it." Jaune put a hand on her shoulder and pushed her out of the way. "It's been really nice having her around all the time with all this wedding stuff going on."

"Yes, I can't wait!" Nora pumped her fist.

"Pancakes are ready." Ren called. Nora took a quick step but was held off by Jaune.

"You already had your fair share." Jaune said. Nora paid no mind to him and pulled him along and into the kitchen.

The four of them sat down and enjoyed their brunch. Jaune went over how the wedding plans were going. It was little more than a month away. Ren and Nora were part of the party as well, as the best man and a bridesmaid respectively.

"Oh, I gotta take this." Ruby said as her scroll started buzzing. "Hello?" She walked away, leaving Jaune at the table with his teammates.

"Ruby's birthday is coming up in a few days." Ren said.

"What are you going to get her?" Nora asked.

"She said she doesn't need anything." Jaune answered.

"It's a trap!" Nora jumped to her feet and slammed a hand to the table.

"But with the wedding so close…"

"She's testing you." Nora insisted. "She wants to see if you'll get her a present just because you want to give her one and not because she asked."

"Huh?" Jaune hadn't thought about that. "Well I…I don't know what to get her."

"Well, if you don't come up with something I'm sure she won't hold it against you." Ren said calmly.

"Yeah, for long. She'll still be hurt."

"So, what do you propose?"

"Something you can share as a memento of your last days before marriage." Ren suggested.

"Like lingerie?" Jaune had no idea why his mind went there.

"No, that's what she buys herself for your birthday." Nora corrected. Jaune's face went red, mostly because Nora wasn't wrong.

"Give it some thought." Ren said. Ruby walked back in.

"That was Weiss going over some details for me." Ruby said as she took her seat.

For the rest of the day, Jaune thought about what he could get Ruby. He didn't want to get anything too expensive and make her feel guilty. He also didn't want to go cheap and be accused of being lazy.

The next day…

Ruby's birthday was tomorrow. Jaune had to decide fast. He had decided to get as many view points as he could so that he could make the most educated and economic decision for a gift. Ruby had no shortage of friends and family, so that's where Jaune started.

"Yang?" Jaune asked over the phone. Surprisingly enough Yang actually answered.

"What's up bro?" Yang said.

"I need your advice." Jaune said. There was a beat of silence.

"I don't know what kind of stuff Ruby is into in that department."

"What? No!" Jaune blushed. "I need advice for a birthday gift."

"Gift? You're getting married in a month." Yang said.

"That's what she said." Jaune responded.

"Well…you can always wrap yourself up and have her unwrap you." Yang said with a giggle.

"And we're done having this conversation." Jaune said.

"It's up to you, but let me know if you need any help." Yang hung up.

"Sure." Next on his list was Taiyang.

"You could get her a teddy bear." Tai suggested.

"She's not five." Jaune said.

"So…I got that for her mother's twentieth and she loved it." Tai said.

"I'll think about it." Jaune responded. Next up was Qrow.

"Just get her a bottle of her favorite wine." Qrow suggested.

"I think we already bought enough alcohol lately." Jaune said.

"Really?" Qrow said hopeful.

"Well, if you're not too busy, I guess you can come by. I know Ruby's always happy when you visit." Jaune was a little iffy about inviting him based on the contents of their liquor cabinet.

"Damn…" Qrow said. "I'll definitely swing by tomorrow. But right now, I'm pretty busy."

"Alright." Jaune hung up. Alright, now to pester Ruby's friends.

"You could buy her a new outfit." Blake said.

"A whole new outfit is a little more than I'm willing to spend." Jaune lamented. "I got to think about the wedding too." Jaune wrapped things up with Blake and switched to Penny.

"Buy her parts for her weapon." Penny said. Jaune sighed. It was a good idea but not one he was comfortable with. He knew nothing about the intricacies of weapon design. His own weapon of choice was a simple sword.

"I wouldn't even know where to begin." Jaune said.

"If you want, I can get you a list." Penny offered.

"If you can send one to me, that would be nice." He sighed. "I'll talk to you later. Bye."

"Bye." Jaune hung up. A few minutes later, Penny sent him a text with a few options for state-of-the-art weapon parts and kits. When he saw the price, Jaune nearly spat out his soda.

"God, how does Ruby afford such a hobby?" He groaned. If he wasn't willing to pay for a cute outfit, there was no way he'd be willing to pay for a new motor or gears for her weapon.

Jaune decided to walk around town, looking for something to buy. He hoped that something would just catch his eye. He looked in every shop and every bargain basement thrift store. Nothing caught his eye.

Every outfit was either something Ruby already owned, or something she would never wear. Every piece of jewelry and weapon part was too expensive for Jaune's budget. He thought about just buying her chocolate and roses and calling it a day. But he felt like that wasn't good enough.

Ruby deserved better. She deserved Jaune going above and beyond what he would do on a Friday night whim regardless of occasion. Jaune knew he was a better boyfriend/fiancé/husband than that.

Then something caught his eye. It was an orange hoodie with Pumpkin Pete on it. He looked at the tag, it was too big for her. In fact, it was more his size. Then he remembered the handful of times she would wear his hoodie while lounging around. So, he dug through the pile and found an identical red hoodie. And underneath it, was a yellow one.

A smile crossed his face. The idea took root. Sure, both hoodies together were a little more than Jaune was willing to spend but this was a gift for himself as well. Something they can share. He nearly laughed at the thought. People would surely snicker at the couple but who cared? Jaune certainly didn't and Ruby wouldn't either.

Ruby's birthday…

Jaune was the first to wake up. Ruby was sound asleep, sprawled out haphazardly on the bed. He eased his way off the bed and put his clothes on. He then quietly slipped into the kitchen and poured a bowl of Ruby's favorite cereal.

While he got situated, he went to the highest cabinet and pulled out her presents. A box of chocolates and the wrapped present with her hoodie in it. Jaune slipped his new hoodie on, then put a coat on over it. He held the boxes in one hand and the bowl in the other as he went into their room.

"Wake up sweetie." He said. He set the bowl on her nightstand and kissed her neck. She stirred awake with a smile. "Happy birthday." He whispered.

"Hey." She whispered. She pulled him in for a kiss. Jaune grinned and bared the fact that she had pretty bad morning breath. "What's with the coat?"

"I was a little cold." Jaune lied. "And I had to get you these." He handed her the box of chocolates.

"Ooh." She cooed.

"Breakfast first." He said. She pouted a little before she saw the bowl of cereal on her nightstand. That lightened her back up.

"What's that other box?" Ruby asked as she stuffed her face with the Choco-Chippies.

"It's your present." Jaune said.

"Jaune." She whined. "I told you I didn't need a present."

"Well I decided to get you one anyway." Yeah, it had nothing to do with Nora.

"Can I open it now?" Ruby asked.

"Sure thing." Jaune said. She opened the box and pulled out the hoodie. She examined it for a solid minute. While she did so, Jaune took off his coat and revealed his matching, albeit yellow, hoodie. That caused Ruby to burst out laughing.

"You're so silly!" Ruby said through her laugh.

"I thought it would look cute on you."

"But it's so big."

"Hasn't stopped you yet." Jaune said.

"I love it. Thank you." Ruby continued to smile. Her smile brought a feeling of ecstasy to Jaune's chest.

"Happy birthday." He said as she put it on.

"Now we're bunny buddies." Ruby laughed.

"Bunny buddies?" Jaune joined in her laughter. They kept giving each other cute looks and laughing, all the while Ruby ate her breakfast. "So, what do you want to do today?" Jaune asked. "Whatever you want, I'm game."

"Well…I got a lot of time before my dad takes me on our annual daddy-daughter date."

"Qrow said he'll be swinging by, but knowing him he'll hitch a ride with your dad."

"Makes sense." Ruby said. She averted his gaze. "So…we have several hours before anything that I have planned."

"Yeah." Jaune liked where this was going.

"So, I…just want to lounge around in bed all day." Ruby said with a red face.

"Well, you're the birthday girl." Jaune shrugged. "Who am I to judge." He kissed her forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too."

 **AN: Not bad for something I threw together for 9 Days of Lancaster. I hope you enjoyed it. And if you're wondering about RWBYond Generations…it's not coming back for a few more weeks.**


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